The Marvelous
by Bodhi Ouellette
Summary: Grant Kemsley has been given the job opportunity of a lifetime at The Daily Bugle; to interview and explore some of the lives of the most notorious superheroes ever. In already troubling times, Grant has to try to convince the people of New York why superheroes are needed again. And he must do it again, when the superheroes he tried to bring back to fame are gone... Rated T
1. Chapter 1

**The Marvelous- Chapter 1**

**Written by Bodhi Ouellette**

* * *

New York City:

Grant Kemsley entered into his apartment, distraught and exhausted. Dirt and rubble was smeared all over his body, falling off of him as he wandered in his home like dust. Immediately he turned on his television. A special "Breaking News" segment from his de facto news station as well as his employer; The Daily Bugle. The female newscaster, like Grant himself, also looked saddened; it was obvious that she had shed some tears from her eyes in the proceeding minutes that have passed. To the right of her displayed ongoing footage of what looked like a white giant spherical orb fixed in the sky above the middle of the whole city. Below her was a byline with text scrolling left to right, displaying "BREAKING NEWS- SHIP IN THE SKY EXPLODES. LARGE MAJORITY OF SUPERHEROES DEAD". The newscaster cleared her throat as she began an attempt to speak to any who are watching.

"For those of you who are just broadcasting in," the female newscaster started, choking up near the end. She placed her hand on her chest to clear her throat again, and then exhaled to calm down. "...If you are not aware of what has happened… a large floating orb in the sky hovered above New York City, threatened to destroy the entire Earth. A large team of the worlds greatest superheroes went in the ship to stop it, but… the ship exploded…" she couldn't stop herself from tearing up again, but as a newscaster, it was her duty to report this news. "... the ship exploded, with all of those superheroes inside of it. The estimate amount of heroes that were killed so far seemed to be closing in on the hundred. We'll update more once we get more information. Excuse me, I really need a moment." The newscaster bolted out of her chair and out of the frame of the camera. Grant started flipping through the other channels to see what they were reporting on. They were all reporting the exact same thing. "SUPERHEROES DEAD!" "HUNDREDS OF SUPERHEROES DEAD!" "LARGE ORB IN SKY KILLS SUPERHEROES!"

Grant got up from his couch to see outside his apartment window; the sky was a dark cloudy orange, with a view of that chalk white orb that hovered in the sky. He could see military helicopters approaching the orb, and ambulance trucks passing by on the road. Looking around the window a little bit more, he could see the total devastation that New York was in. Buildings had been damaged, and roads obliterated. There are still a large amount of people still out, wandering the wrecked Manhattan. Grant turned away, he couldn't bear looking at the disaster anymore. When he entered into his bedroom, he glanced past his laptop, laying on his desk, before he plumped himself on his bed. Moments passed of Grant digesting what he saw this day. He couldn't believe that the heroes, the very people he had spent more than a year with, discussing their lives and what it really means to be a hero... are all gone. Dead. But not without merits. They did not die an un-meaningful death, they died saving New York, and for that matter, the whole world. Their legacy could not be forgotten.

In already troubling times, there needs to be those who can keep hope alive. With the heroes dead, Grant felt it was his duty to help keep it alive. He rose up from his bed to stare at his laptop again, then he got up off of his bed and pulled the chair to his desk out, and sat down in it. Grant opened up his laptop to be faced with the screen of one of his documents full of notes he's transferred over. He moved the cursor over at the top of the doc, highlighting the option 'NEW DOC'. A new window opened, with a blank white page. His hands were on the keyboard as he went on to type his first sentence.

_"Why do we need superheroes?"_

* * *

New York City; One Year Earlier:

Grant Kemsley was just your ordinary young journalist, with ambitions of getting the job of a lifetime. He was around his mid twenties, with short slicked black hair, and was about 5, 7 in height, and usually wore his clothes in a professional manner- like a reporter would- and carried around a leather satchel, which held his laptop, notepad and other things. Grant had been working at the Daily Bugle, after recommendation from his college teacher, Ben Urich, a former reporter at the Bugle suggested Grant's work to Editor-in-Chief Joe "Robbie" Robertson. His work must have been good enough for Robbie to have hired Grant as a journalist at the Daily Bugle.

Grant entered into the main doors of the Daily Bugle building. Panting, his sweaty hands pressed the "Up" button on the elevator. As far as Grant felt, that elevator was taking it's sweet time arriving down at the bottom floor. "_Come on, come on!" _he thought to himself. "_I'm running late again." _He looked down at his watch; 8:57, three minutes until he was officially late. He couldn't afford to come in late again, especially in his third week at the Bugle. Besides, he had to pass in his news report, discussing the rising poverty rising in Manhattan. The light above the elevator, indicating the floor level blinks on the first floor icon. "_Finally," _he thought. Grant proceeded into the elevator, and swiftly pressed the button with the number 23 on it. He had hoped that there wouldn't be anyone that would come onto the elevator at the moment, but alas, Grant was not a lucky person. Over five people loaded into the elevator, crowding around Grant, with the buttons "4", "12", and "19". The elevator doors closed, and the elevator began to move up the building towards the destinations.

Grant hated being around unfamiliar faces, especially in closed environments like elevators. Really, he just hated being in an elevator all together: the crowding how everyone smells like they never take a shower _or _they sprayed too much perfume on them, not to mention Grant had a mild motion sickness. And he especially hated the sudden **STOPS. **The elevator stopped at the 4th level, and one of the people exited out. The elevator continued up to it's destinations, until eventually all of the people except Grant got off.

The elevator reached the 23rd Floor. The doors opened and Grant rushed out, making his way to the E.I.C. Office. The Daily Bugle was populous and busy, as usual, with reporters rushing around the offices passing papers to each other and searching for information on their computers. Grant finally approached the doors of Robbie Robertson and proceeded into his office. Robbie looked up at Grant, then looked down at his watch to check the time.

"8:59," Robbie stated. "You _just _made it."

"I know, and I'm sorry for almost being late with the deadline again, Mr. Robertson," Grant replied with the utmost sincerity.

"Did you get the story done?" Robbie asked.

"Sure did," Grant responded. He pulled over his satchel and grabbed his fully printed story out and placed it down on Robbie's desk. "I made sure to print it this time, _and _to give you the right story to you as well."

"Excellent," Robbie said, as he started skimming through his story. "You've got some very good points in here, Grant. Plenty of information, including arguments and counter arguments." He stopped reading for a moment. "Hm. Though there's one thing that I don't agree on."

"That being?" Grant asked.

"Your statement on how superheroes have a large part in the downfall of New York's tourism and declining population, not to mention the cities economic stances right now."

"Well, as I've pointed out in my story, there's a fair amount of evidence that proves that with New York being _obliterated _every single week, the amount of tourism has decreased, more people are moving out of the city, _and _the amount of collateral damage sustained by the battles made between superheroes and villains that it might just cause the downfall of New York City."

"There's no doubt about that," agreed Robbie. "It's just my opinion. At least you keep an open mind about the evidence you gave." Robbie placed the story on his desk and got up from his chair, and walked over to the window, as he leaned against it with his right arm. "What _are_ your opinions on superheroes, Grant?"

"My thoughts? Well, I'm not someone who thinks they're all bad if that's what you think. But I see them as doing their duty by saving lives and stopping the Earth from getting destroyed every Tuesday. Is it because of my story that you asked me?"

"Partially," Robbie answered, "Because I'm about to offer you a big assignment."

"_Big assignment?"_ stated Grant. "What for?"

"Well, I feel that with an open mind like you have on superheroes, that I could give this specific assignment to you. You're teacher Ben Urich thought of this up when he met up with the Avengers once, but he doesn't have the time to do it, so I might as well give it to you."

"I'm flattered. What's the assignment?"

"The people want to know more about the lives of these superheroes. They want to know a little bit more about the people who save millions of lives every week. I think that you'd be capable of this offering."

"I'd love to," Grant answered. "When do I start?"

"First I've got to tell Mr. Stark that I've got a man to do the job," Robbie explained, "Then I'll assign you some dates that you'll be going to meet with them. Any other people you'd want to interview is on you."

"Well, then I should go and get myself prepared. Thanks, Mr. Robertson."

"Please, Grant. Call me Robbie."

* * *

Mack's Coffee House, Soho; The Next Day:

The premiere breakfast and lunch restaurant to go to in Soho. A hot spot for late teenagers and younger adults, the restaurant had a soft brown and yellow color scheme, and was big enough to hold over fifty customers at a time. No matter what day it was, business boomed, which is why Grant tried his best to get to Mack's Coffee House at a reasonable time to get decent seats for him and his friends. Every Wednesday, Grant and a three of his friends get together at the coffee house to meet and talk and discuss. Grant was the one who'd be at the coffee house before the others in order to get the table they usually get, beside the window. However this time, Grant was not the first one to arrive at the Coffee House. He walked in to see all three of his friends; Mark Coney, a redhead with pale skin and usually wore button up shirts, who worked in accounting, Kelly Lenzi, an Arabic female dressed in casual clothes working as a nurse training to be a doctor, and Brian Resnik, a detective working at the New York Police Department, with a clean cut haircut and wearing "detective" clothes. They all turned around to stare at Grant. "You're late," stated Brian.

"Yeah, sorry about this guys," Grant apologized, as he took a seat next to Mark, right next to the window. "Had to get some research done for my next assignment at the Daily Bugle."

"Hold up," said Kelly, "What about your story you've been working on now? Have you passed it in?"

"Yeah, yesterday morning," replied Grant. "Why did you think that I'd wouldn't pass it in?"

"Well, you have a tendency on starting projects and not getting them done," Mark said with snide.

"That's _different. _That's me reworking books and stories hundreds of times, like all writers go through. _These_ are reports I'm doing."

"Whatever," Mark said. "What's your new thing about?"

"Well, my boss offered me a really big project, about all things superheroes-"

"Oh, great," Brian muttered under his breath.

"What's the problem?" Kelly asked him.

"You know how I feel about those guys around this city," Brian explained. "Not a week goes by and they blow up another city block in New York."

"Well that's one thing that I talked about in my report I passed in to my boss. What are the reasons why Manhattan's global tourism and economy is down."

"What is the assignment all about?" Kelly asked. "What about the superheroes?"

"Their daily lives, what the people of New York think about them, and a bunch of other things, but that's the basic jist of it. It's a _big _project, and he offered me to it, so I figured why not take the challenge?"

"I'm excited," said Mark. "I think you'll do great on it."

"Mark, I doubt you've even _read _any of my work."

"... Yeah, you're right."

"Dick."

"And I don't plan to now."

"Why not?"

"To be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of superheroes either. Especially since they've destroyed my apartment twice. _Twice!" _

"Look, I don't think we're in the mood to be arguing about why superheroes are bad or not," Kelly stated. "Let's just enjoy our lunch and save this discussion for another day."

"Kelly Lenzi, the _Peacemaker!" _Grant joked.

"I try my best."

Brian looked over at the television screen playing on the wall. A press conference coming from Mayor Sterling Brook was taking place, and the customers eyed their attention over to the television screen. The volume turned up to hear the Mayor speak.

"Citizens of Manhattan," started Mayor Brook, "I am here to make a daring claim; as you all know, this great city has been going through a steady decline, in both a decrease in population, and in economical stances. And I am here to give you my thoughts on this. I am working very hard trying to bring back the spirit of New York City back, but I am being held back, and it's all because of _one _group of people, people who have been in this city protecting us for years now, but they must be called out; these people, are _superheroes!_

"_Oh, crap," _Grant thought to himself. "_Just my freaking luck." _

"Well what do you know, Kelly," snited Mark. "I guess the _Peacemaker _couldn't stop the wrath of Mayor Brook now, could she?"

* * *

**And there was the first issue of "The Marvelous". I hoped you enjoyed it, as I did writing it. Please comment on what you liked, what you disliked, what I can improve on, and any other thoughts you had on this, as well as Following and Favoring this story! Updates on this story and all of my other stories are gonna be wonky due to my commitments with DC Prime (a fan-fiction community in which you should all check out for yourselves) as well as running my YouTube channel, stuff on my FictionPress account, and any school work or school related things that come across, but I'll promise not to abandon this, whatever it takes. **


	2. Chapter 2

**The Marvelous- Chapter 2**

**Written by Bodhi Ouellette**

* * *

_"__Why do we need superheroes? This is the question many people have been asking themselves for the past few years. Superheroes like Captain America and Spider-Man have saved hundreds, thousands if not millions and billions of our lives countless times from our near extinction. But why now? Why did we lose hope in them?"_

Grant could feel a vibration rumbling in his front pocket. He dug through his pocket to pick out his cellphone. Kelly was calling him. He picked up. "Hello?" said Grant.

"Grant, where are you?" Kelly asked concernedly.

"I'm at my apartment," Grant answered. "I was just… I had to start writing something."

"Writing something? Grant, the whole cities freaking out of control and you're spending time writing?"

"You don't think I know that? I'm fine, Kelly. What about you?"

"I'm alright. I'm at the hospital, taking care of the injured."

"What about Brian or Mark? Are they ok?"

"No clue. Neither of them has responded to my calls."

"Crap. Want me to call them?"

"Please. I have to get back to work, talk to you later."

"Kay. Bye." The call hung up. Grant searched through his contacts over to Mark's phone number. He calls him up. No answer. "Don't tell me his apartment blew up again," Grant said to himself. Grant then searched his contacts again over to Brian's phone number, and calls him. He picks up. "Grant?" said Brian. "You alright?"

"I'm fine, as is Kelly," answered Grant. "What about you?"

"A bit bruised, but I'm alright. Is Mark ok?"

"Kelly and I tried to get a hold of him. No response."

"Shit," Brian muttered out.

"Do you want me to go check to see if he's ok?" Grant asked.

"No," Brian ordered. "They're setting up a mandatory curfew for all citizens in Manhattan. No one can leave their homes."

"Great, so I'm stuck here."

"Sorry, but I can't do anything about it. I worried about him, too. We'll send a squad out to find as many people as we can. For now, everyone must get indoors."

"I understand. Stay safe, Brian."

"I always do." The call ended. Grant got back to staring at his computer module, with the words he already typed out. He continued to type out his thoughts.

_"__Why did we lose hope in them? Was it because we found ourselves to be more determined of them to save us? Is it because we realized that the world seemed a lot more dangerous than it was? Maybe it was because these superheroes are just a fad, and we would slowly get tired of them. I believe it is because we became less attached from them. We've forgotten that they were human, just like us. Individuals who had regular lives, were friends with not only each other, but with other people, and interacted with everyone around us. You're friend might've been a superhero even. And I was given that chance to write about their lives…"_

* * *

Avengers Tower, New York City:

A taxi pulled up against the sidewalk. Grant entered out of the sidewalk, thanking the driver behind him, as the taxi drove off. Grant glanced up to gaze at the incredible architecture of the Avengers Tower, designed with a tinted golden glow, with an almost spiral like building structure. Grant took a large breath, and moved forward into the tower. He walked into the tower, glimpsing around the massive Main Lobby area, with very few people in it. Grant was confused as to what to do next; should he go to the elevator to reach the heroes? Is there going to be someone coming to retrieve him? Did they completely forget about him altogether? The option he went for was to just wait and see.

Suddenly, he could hear a voice calling out to him. "Hello, Mr. Kemsley," said an oddly British sounding voice coming from a speaker on the ceiling. "Is… is that for me?" Grant asked.

"Yes, indeed," the voice answered. "I am J.A.R.V.I.S., Tony Stark's and the Avengers loyal artificial intelligence. You are the reporter who will be doing the paper on the Avengers team, correct?"

"Yes," Grant answered.

"Enter into one of the elevators," informed J.A.R.V.I.S., "then press the 45th button. It'll lead you up to the floor where most of the Avengers partake in relaxation."

"Understood; thanks uh, J.A.R.V.I.S."

"You are most certainly welcome, sir."

Grant followed the A.I.'s orders; he entered into one of the elevators, and then pressed on the 45th button. The elevator doors closed and began to bring him up to his destination. _"More elevators,_" he thought. Despite Grant's animosity towards elevators, he found this particular ride to be incredibly smooth, including a steady stop, which didn't make Grant want to puke out his lungs. The elevator doors opened up again, now at the 45th floor. Grant exited out of the elevator to be greeted by another figure, this time by a figure in butler garb. "Good morning, Mr. Kemsley," the Butler addressed. "My name is Edwin Jarvis, personal butler to both Tony Stark _and_ the Avengers."

"Wait a minute. There are _two _Jarvis'?" asked Grant confusingly.

"Indeed there are," the A.I. J.A.R.V.I.S. responded with. "I am based off of the fellow in front of you, Mr. Kemsley."

"Well, that's a twist." Grant looked around to see no one else around. "Where are the Avengers?"

"Ah, Mr. Kemsley," started Edwin Jarvis, "I do apologize, but the Avengers had to leave shortly before you arrived to deal with a pesky man eating spider infection in Australia. They should be back hopefully soon. In the meanwhile, you can make yourself at home." Edwin escorted Grant over to a large living room, with over four couches and a large 60 inch flat screen television mounted onto the wall. "There's television with over 2000 channels for you to watch. Would you care to have anything to drink, sir?"

"Water's good me right now," said Grant. Edwin went to retrieve a glass of water for Grant. Grant meanwhile looked around for a remote control to turn the television on, but he could not find one. "There is no remote control, Mr. Kemsley," said J.A.R.V.I.S., "If you wish to turn the TV on, you must ask me to turn it on for you."

"Um… alright then… J.A.R.V.I.S., turn on the TV."

"Will do, sir," The television turned itself on, showing the last channel that was watched was the Hallmark Channel. "Is there any particular channel you'd like to watch, sir?" J.A.R.V.I.S. asked.

"Um… I guess one of the news stations, like the Daily Bugle," Grant addressed. The television screen changed over to Channel 11, where the Daily Bugle's newscast station was broadcasted on. He was just broadcasting into a heated discussion between four other newscasters on… the mayor's comments on Superheroes. _"Oh, great," _Grant though, "_More controversy over my article, just what I needed." _

Edwin came back with Grant's glass of water. "Here's your glass of water, Mr. Kemsley," said Edwin.

"Thanks," Grant said, as he grabbed the glass of water.

"Everything all right, sir?" questioned Edwin.

"I'm fine. I'm just watching them complain about the Mayor."

"You know, if I recall, didn't the Mayor go on a rant in response for the article published by the Bugle… written by you?"

"Unfortunately; now a lot of angry people want my head for it."

"I don't blame you, or any of them for that matter. The only person who really is to blame here is the Mayor."

"Yeah, if only he stopped reading the papers to find something to blame all of our problems on, instead of, y'know, doing his _job." _

"Funny. That's the exact same response I had. Will that be all for you, sir?"

"Yeah, I think this'll do me just well. Thank you."

"The pleasure was mine, Mr. Kemsley." Jarvis left, and Grant was stuck watching The Daily Bugle discuss the whole Mayor controversy ironically involving the DB. "Screw this," he said. "J.A.R.V.I.S., take me to anything other than _this _channel? Or any other news channel for that matter?"

"Of course," J.A.R.V.I.S quickly changed the channel over to HBO, where _The Shawshank Redemption_ was broadcasting. With the movie on, and the volume up, it was time for Grant to sit back, relax, and think and take some notes.

* * *

Three movies later, Grant was now watching his fourth movie, _A Bronx Tale_, now lying down across the couch, at this point more engaged in the films he's been watching than whenever the heroes would come back from their adventure. It was almost six o'clock. If they weren't going to arrive soon, he would just go home and call it a night, maybe schedule another time to talk. But then, he could hear the sounds of a small jet approaching the Tower. Grant looked out the window to see the jet hover above the outside balcony. Coming out from the jet was Captain America, Iron Man, Captain Marvel, Spider-Man, Thor, and Wasp. The jet flew off, and the heroes entered into the building. "Well, I think I've had enough spider webs for a few years," said Iron Man, as he pulled of his helmet to reveal his face to be Tony Stark. "No offense to you, Spidey."

"Offense mildly taken," said Spider-Man.

"How was your trip in Australia?" Edwin Jarvis asked.

"We took out Ai Apaec and his little spider army he had control of, threatening to destroy all of Sydney," told Thor. "His army of spiders was _almost_ as big as the Frost Giants back in Jotunheim._ Almost, _that is_. _But their poisonous bites and sticky spider webs we're nothing against my Mjolnir."

"He even took control of Spidey and I for a little bit," Wasp mentioned. "Must've been a new power of his that he got, and I didn't like it. I got hit in the _face _by Cap's shield from it!"

"You were about to fry me, Janet," explained Captain America. "I had to try to defend myself."

"Yeah, and now I've got a huge headache because of it."

"I have dinner ready for all of you soon," said Jarvis. "In the meantime, you have a guest that's been patiently waiting for you."

The heroes all looked over at the Living Room where they could see Grant staring at them. "Uh, yeah," Grant approached the heroes. "I'm Grant Kemsley, reporter from the Daily Bugle. I'm here for the article."

"Hey, Grant," greeted Tony, he stuck his hand out at Grant, and the two embrace in a handshake. "Welcome to the Avengers Tower. I hope we didn't take too long for you to wait."

"Nah, its fine," said Grant. "You _are _superheroes after all; saving the world is your first priority. Besides, it's gotten me to think about a few things, and kill some brain cells on HBO."

"Transformers 2 was on, wasn't it?"

"Mhm."

"Well, sorry we had to keep you waiting, Grant," Carol said. "You can stay and have dinner with us," she offered.

"Thanks," said Grant. "I'd love to. What's for dinner?"

"Beef Wellington," answered Jarvis, "with sides of mashed potatoes, broccoli, and salad, with apple cider as a beverage."

"I think my mouth is watering," Grant joked.

"You too?" Spidey responded. They all let out a good chuckle.

* * *

The Dinner Table was set up; with all the plates, utensils and food laid out on the table. Grant took his seat on one of the sides on the table, so he was not sitting next to anyone. Opposite on the other end of him was Thor, who was holding a large Asgardian beer cup, full of his own beer that he brews himself back on Asgard. On the left of Grant's peripheral view, Carol Danvers, Peter Parker and Tony Stark sat to eat, while on the other side, Steven Rogers and Janet Van Dyne sat. Jarvis also joined them, sitting next to Janet. All of the heroes we're now in their civilian clothes.

"I'll tell you one thing about how I make this incredible beer I have in my hands!" Thor howled. "Tis a wonderful tale! In the basements of Asgard is where we keep all of our wonderful alcohols. One time I was down there, after I had returned to fight off a giant Celestial that threatened to destroy the Earth, a few of the other brewers and I were preparing for a massive celebration for our victories. But then we came to a problem; we ran out of a special ingredient that made our beer how it was. So we were forced to use a substitute. We we're reluctant at first when we mixed it all together, but we all tried it first in order to see if it was any good enough… it was the best beer we've ever made! And thus, this beer was born. You should try some of this."

"Well, you know my condition with anything alcoholic, Thor," said Tony. "I'm trying to keep myself sober. And I'm not letting you ruin it for me."

"Count me out too, Thor," said Carol. "Sorry, but I need to keep my sobriety as well."

"Anyone else who wants to try this?" asked Thor, shaking the beer bottle around, waiting for someone to try it. "I'll try some," Grant spoke out. "What harm will come of it? Besides, it's beer that's made by _gods. _Why wouldn't I want to try some?"

Thor then handed the bottle over to Edwin, who then handed it to Janet, and then to Steve, and finally over to Grant. Grant picked up the large beer cup to his lips and took a small sip of the beer. He then took another sip. And then another. And finally one more sip. He licked his lips to wipe away the beer foam that was left behind on his upper lip. "Magnificent!" said Grant. "That's incredible!"

"See? I told you!" Thor replied with.

"So, what else should we talk about?" Janet asked.

"What if we talked a little bit about you, Grant," Steve suggested. "You're going to be our reporter for this article, so why not share a little bit about yourself?"

Grant settled his fork down after taking a bite of the Beef Wellington. "Well… hm. Where do I start?"

"Start anywhere," said Carol.

"If you insist, I suppose. I guess I'll start with my family; I was raised in Boston by my parents, Fred and Margaret, with my two other siblings, Henry and Sarah. I spent most of my life there. Actually all of my life there up until when I graduated from High School and I went to Empire State University for college."

"Same here," Peter said.

"And that's where I met three of my best friends there; Brian, Mark, and Kelly. I don't know what I would've done without them."

"Why's that?" Janet asked.

"Maybe it's because I'm not much of a social person. I was very seclusive in High School. It was almost made worse after I found out that my father and sister were killed in a car accident. I remember being stuck in my room for almost a month. With the exception of going to classes, I wouldn't talk to anyone or want to _be _with anyone. But they helped me out of it. And I thank them so much for it."

"It's always good to have friends that you can depend on," said Steve.

"What did you go to college for?" Tony asked.

"Journalism," Grant answered. "I majored in it because one; I liked reading and writing my whole life, and two; I was mostly inspired by Phil Sheldon's book _Marvels." _

"I know that man," Steve said. "Sheldon was a great guy. Plenty of us have met him and knew him very well. Shame that he's no longer with us."

"Yeah, I was a bit sad too when he died," said Grant. "I met him only once, at one of his book signings. He was the most pleasant guy I've ever met. To see how integrated he was with the superhero community was astounding. Even took a picture with him."

"So, is that why you took this assignment?" asked Tony. "To do the same thing as Phil did?"

"I wouldn't say it's all because of him," Grant said. "I would say to any reporter, the chance to do this big of a project, who wouldn't say no to something like this? But I've been thinking, and it's partially inspired by that little rant Mayor Brook went on two days ago. Maybe you don't know, but people are losing faith in you guys. Why people are beginning to, I don't know yet, and the Mayor's speech is a perfect example of it."

"Oh, yeah… I forgot you were the one who wrote that article in the Bugle," Carol responded with.

"Yeah, and now I wish I didn't send it in. Now most of the Bugle wants my head because it's giving them too much controversy, all because of the freaking Mayor."

"Don't put yourself down like that," Steve said. "Now this is your time to make things right. So what's your plan?"

"I figured I wouldn't want to do this as a regular one and done article," Grant explained. "I want to get to know your superhero community. I would be around one superhero maybe for a few days at times, and I would write down what I've experience. I want the people to know what you guys go through, and maybe even explore some of your daily lives, even, but that'll depend on if a super villain doesn't read the article and finds out all about you."

"Trust me, I wouldn't worry too much about that," Tony said. "The entire world knows what our real names are."

"Yeah, just be careful about what you share, and ask us beforehand on what to publish and what not to," Peter said concerning. "I've had my experiences with it, unfortunately."

"Of course," said Grant. "I wouldn't do anything you guys don't want me to."

"Tis a deal!" Thor said, and he got up from his chair and lifted his beer cup above. "I say we grant a toast! To our new friend Grant!" The other heroes and Jarvis followed as well, as they also gave a toast to Grant as well. Grant joined in with the toast too. "Now, who wants to go first?" Grant asked. "And who else do you think would be interested in this?"

"I can go first," Steve said. "And we'll ask the others as to if they want to be covered in this big plan as well."

"Excellent," said Grant pleasingly. "Tomorrow, do you think we can start?"

"Sure, son," Steve agreed. "Tomorrow it is."

"Great. This is going to be good."

* * *

**And there was the second chapter of The Marvelous! Please comment, favor and follow this story if you liked it! You might be curious as to where exactly this takes place in the Marvel Universe (Or you just don't care). I pinpointed this to be somewhere around the beginning of the Marvel NOW! line of books, with some alterations here and there. The biggest change, and one I think many of you might be happy with, is that One More Day never happened. It'll be explained more in a future chapter, but that's why Peter is at the dinner as himself. Hope you all enjoyed this second chapter!**

**Please check out the DC Prime Fanfiction page on Fanfiction, as well as our own site too. Also check out my YouTube page where I post all kinds of videos! And finally, check out my FictionPress account, where I'll be posting my original ideas over there. All of these links are on **


	3. Chapter 3

**The Marvelous- Chapter 3**

**Written by Bodhi Ouellette**

* * *

"_...I was given that chance to write about their lives; the lives of a superhero. At this point in time, most of the more well known superheroes had their identities revealed to the world, the most well known of them being that genius billionaire playboy philanthropist Tony Stark- copyright Tony Stark himself- also known as everyone's favorite red and yellow tin can Iron Man. Or maybe the most patriotic man and an American hero of all time Steven Rogers, wearing the colors of the American flag as Captain America. We may know their names, but we may not have _known _them, as a person, as an individual in their private or public lives. Of course, there was a major risk in doing this article about these superheroes, and that was to not reveal everything about their personal lives. But that is why a challenge is fun. It gave me a bit to work with, to tell the world…" _the phone ranged yet again, which was quickly getting on Grant's nerves. He hated being distracted or interrupted when he was writing. He grabbed his phone and looked at who was calling him. It was Robbie. He picked the call up. "Mr. Robertson?" said Grant.

"Grant," Robbie's voice muttered out through the phone. "Please tell me you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"To see if you we're all right, that's all. It's _crazy _over here, Grant. We're all rushing to get these stories out under heavy emotions."

"I can imagine."

"We're all struggling to comprehend what's happened, Grant. Myself included. My god, I… I can't believe they're all gone."

"I know, Robbie."

"Especially with Peter. I _knew _him well, Grant. I've known him since he was just a teen. And now… he's dead. Just like the other heroes."

Grant couldn't think of anything as a respond to after that sentence, so he tried to quickly move on to another subject. "Have you heard what the cops are doing?"

"No, what is it?"

"They're putting a mandatory curfew on everyone in the city. _Nobody_ is allowed outside for a few hours, until they can get some experts to examine what that orb in the sky is doing now."

"Damn. Hope it's not a long one."

"I hope so, too. But we'll just have to wait and see."

"Indeed. Alright, I need you to take care of yourself, Grant, till this is all over."

"You too, Robbie. See ya."

"Bye, Grant." He placed the phone down yet again, and he continued on with his work. "Now, then, if I can try to not have any more distractions," he said to himself. He went back to his work.

"…_But that is why a challenge is fun. It gave me a bit to work with, to tell the world what these people are like, in the most vague way possible. So I spent more than a year forming these reports on these heroes. The first one I started with was Captain America..."_

* * *

One-Year Ago

The Daily Bugle:

"So let me get this straight," Robbie said to an anxious Grant, who looked like he was a five year old opening his presents on Christmas Day. "You want to tell this story in a semi-episodic, weekly story that we would publish?"

"Why not?" said Grant. "It would bring in readers to read the papers on a weekly, if not _daily_ basis. It'll certainly be better than writing just one article all at once, and it's certainly an ambitious idea. So, what do you think? Do I have the ok from you?"

"Hm… it does sound more appealing to do it this way. Plus everything else you've just said. All right, I'll allow it. I expect our first part in by Monday, Grant."

"You've got it, Joe."

"And I actually want it in _on time._"

"I can guarantee that. Well, I have to head off, see you on Monday, Joe!" Grant said as he left his office and went off to start his first part of his story.

* * *

Avengers Tower:

Grant arrived yet again at the Avengers Tower to meet up with his first superhero he's interviewing: Steven Rogers AKA Captain America. Grant waited by the first floor entrance, leaning on a wall beside the elevator. To pass the time till Steve came down, Grant had a little notebook out, writing some notes on ideas for stories. So far, his list included dystopian setting, Clint Eastwood esc hero, crazy Shyamalan twist, and magic. Half of these ideas came out of Grant's rear though, and the other half were just meant to be jokes, but Grant was surprisingly finding a story somewhere in these four ideas he wrote down. Whether they'll amount to anything will be the challenge. The elevator opened beside him, and Steve Rogers came out in gym clothes, and carrying a bag with him.

"Morning, Grant," Steve said to Grant.

"Hey Steve," Grant greeted back. "So, what's our schedule for today?"

"Well, I usually start my day off by working out," clarified Steve. "Shall we make our way there?"

"Lead the way," told Grant. Steve led himself out the front lobby, as Grant followed him out onto the streets of New York City. "I'm kind of surprised you go somewhere else to work out," commented Grant. "I would think you Avengers members had your own training room."

"We _do,"_ answered Steve. "But sometimes, the training center gets a bit boring… until the next update Tony or Bruce or any of the other Avengers may have installed. Plus, it's good to spend some time out of the tower and into the city. Interact with the people."

"I see…" stated Grant, writing these tidbits on his notepad. "So, you grew up here, right?"

"I did, son," said Steve. "I remembered roaming around the dirtier and more browner Manhattan like it was yesterday. I also remember struggling to grasp this _new _Manhattan after I came back into the present. Even being here for years now, I still have a hard time comprehending the changes. Which is another reason why I come out here as much as I can; to connect myself more with the people and the world that I've been tossed into."

"Even after all these years, you still feel that way?"

"I do. Crazy, isn't it?"

"Well, considering the fact you've been fighting aliens, super powered terrorists, gods, and so much more, you would think that maybe the world around you has finally caught up to you."

"It's a mystery even to me, son. Which is why this has been a good thing for me."

"Hey, uh, where is this gym you're going to exactly? We've passed by three blocks already."

"And we've got another twenty blocks to go."

"_Twenty?!" _

"Oh, pipe down, it'll be good for you, Grant. Get the cardio working into you."

"Fine… wow, I can't believe I've been told off by _Captain America_ himself."

"I've been known for doing that. Especially at Tony."

"I can imagine."

* * *

Twenty-two more blocks later, Steve and Grant have finally arrived at the gym. It was a big gym, with a display of gym equipment arranged all the way to the very back of the building, and most of the stations taken up by loyal customers of the gym. There is also a station focused on gymnastics and acrobatics. Steve heads straight for the gymnastics stations, Grant following behind him. He took a seat on one of his benches as he watched Steve put his bag aside. Steve pulled a few items out of the bag, and then approached one of the Ring Frames set up. He put on some grips and then spread some chalk on his hands. Steve leaped up, grabbing the pole without any assistance. He twirled, twisted, and circled all around the Horizontal Bar. Grant watched, but was quickly losing interest. In fact, he already felt disinterested with whatever Steve would be doing at the gym. He yawned, as he continued to watch, and continuously looked down at his note, in hopes that he might find something.

* * *

Near the end of their time at the Gym, Steve had just finished his final station working his upper biceps. He returned back to Grant, still staring down at his notes. He wiped off some sweat with his towel and then picked up his bag. "I'm done," he said to Grant. "Let's go get some lunch."

* * *

Ivan's Deli Shop:

Steve and Grant were now in line to purchase some lunch at this shop Steve almost always goes to whenever he has the chance to. Their deli sandwiches have been praised as being the best sandwiches in New York City. They moved up the line, as they are the next customers to order. "Hey, Steve," the worker said. "How's it been? Haven't seen you here in a while."

"Well, saving the world can take up a lot of your personal time," replied Steve. "I've got a buddy with me today, name's Grant. He's a journalist."

"So he's following you around? You planning your biography?"

"No, this is on a more _bigger _scale."

"Well in that case, what would you and your buddy like?"

"I'll have my usual: pastrami on rye," ordered Cap.

"I'll have a turkey bacon club, please," said Grant.

"Mayonnaise or honey mustard?" the worker asked Grant for what kind of dressing he wants.

"Honey mustard."

The two paid their sandwiches and went over to sit down beside the wall. Grant pulled out his notepad, looking dissatisfied in the process. Steve came back with a small cup of coffee in his hands. He looked at Grant, while Grant's attention was on his notes. "You don't seem to be happy," commented Steve.

"I'm not, sorry to say," replied Grant. "It's just… I'm looking through these notes that I've made during the gym. And there aren't a lot. We're already at lunchtime, and I haven't gotten anything that would seem even remotely interesting to make into an article. Guess that's what I get for going into this assignment expecting more 'awesomeness' going on with you guys."

"Well, we all do it. We expect more in a situation that we anticipate, and sometimes it'll fall short on those expectations."

"Yeah, I guess… but what exactly am I suppose to do with this? I don't think I can make an article and expect people to be interested about how Captain America goes to the gym and does gym stuff."

"You'd be surprised. There are some people out there who probably _would _want to know how I do, as you said 'gym stuff'"

"How would you know about that-"

"We've had plenty of fans who are, let's just say… are obsessive about us."

"Urgh, this is not helping me, though. This day needs some _excitement. _Some action! Some ass kicking while chewing bubble gum! Pow zap boom wow! Get what I'm saying?"

"I get what you're saying. Only problem is that one; it'd partially ruin your whole point of this story, and two; it's too dangerous for you to go with us into missions."

"Couldn't there be some way you can let me tag along? Like putting me in one of Iron Man's suits, or having someone protect me throughout the mission? Or put me in a glass hamster bowl?"

"Right now, the answer is _no. _We're not risking your life."

"Fine," Grant said irritatingly.

"We'll take as long as we can to find something you can use in your article."

"But how?" Grant asked

"Ask me anything."

"Alright then, uhm… what's it like being an Avenger?"

"It's _incredible_," Steve answered. "Traveling across continent after continent, galaxy upon galaxy, universe within universe, you really get to learn and experience a lot. But it's no easy task to do. You're a superhero to fight the battles that no one else can. To be a symbol that anyone can look up to and be inspired by. And right now, being an Avenger is what inspires me, because it inspires everyone else. I'm happier than I've ever been in my life to be honest. What about you and your friends?"

"Nothing much, same old same old. My friend Kelly's working as a nurse, Mark's an accountant, and Brian's a detective working at NYPD. Because we've all got time consuming jobs we try to get together every week at least once."

"It's good to keep in touch with your friends. I know I still do."

"You mean you have friends that aren't Avengers?"

"Of course. Granted, almost all of them have passed away, but I still keep in touch with the friends that are still alive and their families."

One of the workers called them up to get their orders. Steve told Grant that he'd get the sandwiches for them. However, when Steve came back, a customer, wearing sunglasses, dressed in a sweater and jeans and had a French like moustache, sitting across from them swiped his leg across Steve's ankles, tripping him. Steve fell onto the floor, dropping the sandwiches in the process. The man who tripped him got up and sat right on Steve's back pinning him onto the floor, while Grant and the rest of the people inside watched helplessly. The man who attacked Steve then lifted up his head and spoke into his ear. "Bonjour, monsieur," he said to him.

Steve instantly recognized that voice. "Batroc?" Steve said back to him. "I thought you we're imprisoned at the Raft."

"Not anymore I am!" said Batroc as he picked Steve up and threw him into a wall. Customers began to evacuate the shop, all except for Grant, who made any attempt he could to stay inside to see the action firsthand. Batroc bounced off the walls, attacking Steve head on with a kick into his stomach. When he attempted to do it again, Steve grabbed Batroc's leg and slammed him into a wall. While Batroc was incapacitated, Steve dug into his bag, and grabbed out a metal wristband with a red orb on the outside. When he slid it onto his arm, it turned on, and a translucent shield resembling Cap's vibranium shield materialized. Batroc made another attempt to attack, but Steve blocked the attack with his shield. When Batroc attacked again, Steve knocked him to the floor and pinned him down. "Stand down, Batroc!" ordered Steve. "You're little assault on me has failed!"

"Oh, but the fight is not over yet, est-il? It'll be over once one of us is unconscious!" Batroc then punched Steve in the knee, and then got back up and gave a powerful kick to Steve, which chucks him right through the window and into the streets, knocking him into someone's car, denting the two drivers seats side doors. Batroc leaped out of the broken window and jumped in front of Steve. However, Steve swung his shield across Batroc's body. Batroc fell and hit his head hard onto the sidewalk, making a cut into his forehead. He quickly jumped back up onto his feet however, ready to fight again. Steve made the first move, charging right at Batroc head-on, using his shield to try to swing at Batroc's head. Batroc dodged that attack, which left Steve opened for Batroc to grab Steve's throat and started choking him. He slammed him onto the ground, and got on top of Steve, trapping him. Steve struggled to get out of Batroc's hold of him, but he just continued to squeeze his throat tighter and tighter.

"Well, it looks like I'd finally do what others couldn't!" proclaimed Batroc victoriously. "I will be known for _killing _the great monsieur Captain America! A bit anti-climatic however, but I'll take my chance right now-"

All of a sudden, Batroc felt an immense rush of pain in his head. This pain quickly incapacitated Batroc, as he fell over onto the ground unconscious. When Steve looked up to see who caused Batroc to go out, he saw Grant, with a wooden chair in his hands. He dropped the chair and helped Steve up off the sidewalk. "Thanks, Grant," said Steve. "You took Batroc out."

"_And _saved your life, right?"

"I'd be lying if I said yes. Batroc was going to need stronger hands to really choke me out. Besides, It wouldn't have worked either way. But you at least took him out, and for that, I thank you for it. I'll reconsider having you come along on some missions. You can clearly take care of yourself, and even help out too."

A few police vehicles pulled up towards where the Deil was, along with one ambulance truck and fire truck. Out from one of the police cars was Brian, who approached both Grant and Steve in shock. "Grant? What are you doing here?" asked Brian.

"Starting my whole blog, article… thingy," trailed Grant. "And let me tell you, Brian, I think I've got an interesting first part to it."

"What happened?"

"Batroc attacked me in this shop," answered Steve. "The battle was short, but we took him out."

"We?" said Brian.

"Your friend Grant was the one who took him out."

"With a chair, no less," Grant added.

"And you couldn't _help _but destroy this place, is that right?"

"We'll pay for all of the damages, I assure you."

"And the ones who've been hurt? We've got a few people who ended up getting injured because of this."

"You can't save everyone, son. Trust me, we do our best to save everyone we can."

"Tell that to the ones who've lost loved ones during all of these alien invasions-"

"Knock it off, Brian," Grant intervened. "Be a little bit more respectful next time."

Brian didn't say anything. He went over to Batroc and put handcuffs on him. He then picked him up and brought him over to his car. Brian drove off with Batroc. Steve looked back at Grant. "What's his problem?" asked Steve.

"He _loathes _superheroes," answered Grant. "Reason being is you guys cause way too much destruction of public property. And a lot of people either get injured or die."

"I can't say I don't see why he dislikes us, but he needs to work on his manner."

"He's always been like that, unfortunately. When you've done something wrong, he chastises you till the day you die, and then some. Well, at least this battle's given me a story I can work on. Should have it done by tonight."

"I don't doubt you'll make a great story out of this."

"Well, you'll just have to wait a few days to read it. See how well it is. So, what about lunch?"

"This is New York City, son. There's _dozens _of other restaurants we can go to. And I've got a few in mind."

* * *

**And that was the end of chapter 3 of The Marvelous! Sorry for the longer delay of this issue, I kinda had a bit of writer's block concerning this issue. And laziness. Also, been working on a side project of mine for my YouTube channel, which should hopefully be starting sometime in September. I'm not sure when the next issue for this will hit, but it probably won't be as long as it took for this issue to come out. Check out the DC Prime Fanfiction site that I write for in my profile, as well as checking out my FictionPress account, where I'll be doing some original stories that I hope to start soon, and YouTube account as well where I'll be making all kinds of videos! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you liked what you've read of this story so far, you can favorite and follow it, and also leave a comment too, that way I can know what you thought of it, and anything I should improve!**

**Also, I have a little bit of a quiz for you all (that I should've put in the first chapter but didn't); we have four characters, Grant (our protagonist) and his friends Kelly, Brian and Mark. All four of them are named after famous comic book writers. Some of them should be obvious, but when I introduce more characters, I plan on naming them off of comic book creators, so keep an eye out for them. Every chapter I'll remind you of any names you recognize. **


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